Adaptation of working hours act (WAA)

Country of implementation

The Netherlands

General short description of the innovation

This law gives employees under certain conditions the right to ask for change in working hours, for example because of caring responsibilities. It is meant to facilitate the combination of work and care, women?s participation in the labour market and a more equal distribution of work and care between men and women.

Target group

Total Population

Policy Field

employment

wage

Type of Policy

public

Duration of the policy

since 2000

Scope of innovation

Scope: structural

Number of intended beneficiaries: unknown, but potentially all employees working for one year or longer who wanto change working hours

Spatial coverage: national

General description of (intended) objectives and strategies

According to the evaluation, the act was intended: (1) to increase the supply of labour and employment, (2) to make it easier to combine paid work with other work and (3) to create opportunities for more varied working hours/greater flexibility. The act provides employees with the formal right to increase or decrease their working hours, provided they have been working for the employer for at least one year and their request does not interfere with companies? interests. Small companies with fewer than 10 employees are exempted, but have to make their own arrangements. /

Nature of the innovation-long-term perspective

structural formalization of employee?s rights with regards to working hours

Type of innovation

new policy, practice or measure

New outputs

regulations of the labour market

working time

Clarification of intended mechanisms, outputs and outcomes (optional)

The act formalizes the possibility for workers to claim less or more working hours to be able to comply with other obligations or ambitions. Is part of a much longer trend in the Netherlands since the seventies to promote parttime work

Intended target group

Employees who want to increase or decrease their working time and who have worked at least one year for their employer and who work in companies with more than 10 employees

Working age population

employment situation (typical work)

main source of income: paid work

Actors involved in policy-making/implementation and/or evaluation

central state (regulation, but this is a framework law, collective agreements on working time determine the details)

employees (organised or individual)

employers (organised or individual)

Clarification of the role of various actors

Agreements on working time are part of social dialogue between employees and employers and their collective agreements. This framework act has regulated this process by giving more rights to employees to claim change in working time.

Intended output

regulation of the labour market

working time

Did the innovation have any outcome related to job quantity?

parttime work has probably increasedparticipation rate has probably increased

Intended and unintended outcomes

not available

Clarification of outcomes in terms of impacting resilience and labour market inclusion

The evaluation states that the number of people contemplating change in working hours has increased. 38% of large employers find that more employees have asked for change in working hours since enactment of the law. These demands are mostly met by the employers. Although hard evidence is not presented, the The evaluation states that the act has probably increased the supply of labour as well as total employment, because of the greater flexibility the act allows for workers: the decision to keep working despite other responsibilities has become easier. It is not clear whether the act has contributed to a more equal division of work and care between men and women. Moreover, many employees are not aware of the act, meaning that they would possibly try to negotiate other working hours without this act as well. The impact for vulnerable groups is not assessed. However, the act benefits only workers who are already ?inside? the labour market.